Ibn Abdul Razzaq
Pakistan, the land of pure has sustained and survived the brunt of various multi-faceted challenges for seventy two years with experiencing different forms of governments whether it is democracy or an army rule_ direct or indirect. With no uncertainty, despite of having defunct institutions that foment progressive deterioration of public service, disorganize with the rise of factionalized elites and destabilize; internally or externally through political incapability, civil- military conundrum and role of external political actors. These 3D’s are not permanent and does not count any importance in the pages of bloodless birth of a state that Jinnah got as in his own words “truncated or mutilated and moth-eaten Pakistan” is still running and will be ever with the blessings of Almighty and that what matters. The smooth and unbridled running cannot be achieved without taking into account all those issues, responsible for impeding her socio-political and economic development that need to be addressed with a serious demand of urgency followed by an unbiased and a dispassionate diagnosis.
The issues could be many but among all the most prominent are mentioned below:
” Political Immaturity
” Economic Insecurity
” Institutional Instability
As James Freeman once said “A politician thinks of the next election, a statesman of the next generation”. Unfortunately, Pakistan has encompassed with a majority of those state runners that are either immature or not willing to reform having assistance that a majority of masses do not cast the vote but vote the caste. It is high time for all of those who are sitting in the respective assemblies, must pay serious heed how to administer this state with the best of their capability as a statesman does. With this, Pakistan may able to gain a glorified image labeled as a ‘country of peace’ having a focused vision and an exemplar of administration for the rest of the world. Chaos is inevitable outcome when the raw material (input) is in the form of discriminatory laws or policies. Legislators have to realize the severity of a responsibility of which their shoulders are burdened, recognize the very fact that they are not meant to sit, talk and leave but are the chosen ones who have to represent, reimage and resolve the case of termite that is eating away Pakistan’s national fabric. They must be able to proactively figure out an alternative how to re-jig the long prevailing sharp economic depletion, having a productive and working economic policy will be a plus. A five-fold strategy needs to be opted to provide a possibility in order to overcome any policy failure i.e.
I. Agenda Setting: A problem or issue rises to prominence on the agenda.
II. Formulation: Possible policies are created and will be debated in a series of parliamentary sessions.
III. Adoption: The government with the consent of opposition party adopts one policy.
IV. Implementation: The appropriate government agency ensures and enacts the policy.
V. Evaluation: State officials judge whether the policy has been successful or not, if not, then the policy must be declared null and void or re-engineered.
Reorienting and establishing the political equilibrium leads to the revival of the institutional reforms as mentioned by Acemoglu and Robinson’s The Role of Institutions in Growth and Development, Working paper 10, Growth Commission (2008). The authors use the example of China to substantiate their view of the importance of institutional and policy reforms. According to them:
“It can hardly be denied, for example, that the rapid take-off of growth in China after 1978 was a result of policy and institutional reforms. These were a direct result of the defeat of the ‘Gang of Four’ and a dramatic shift in those who controlled the Communist Party. Growth did not occur because the culture of the Chinese changed, or because some geographical constraint was lifted. Growth also did not occur because previously the Chinese were mistaken about the correct form of policy. They did not suddenly discover what to do. Rather, growth occurred because the political equilibrium changed in a way that gave more power to those who wanted to push through reforms. Said in this way, our analysis is an optimistic one. The institutional approach opens the promise that if we can understand the determinants of political equilibria then we can really design interventions that make poor societies prosperous”.
Moreover, a long term structural and institutional reforms agenda must be exercised in order to mitigate the hurdles that curb their performance according to the opted objectives;
” De-politicization of the institutions.
” One line budgetary allocation to ensure financial autonomy.
” Submission and appearance an annual report before the Parliamentary Committee.
” Culture of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to evaluate and direct the institution to work in accordance to its set standards.
” Revamping and enacting ‘The Freedom of Information Act’ to hold the workers accountable.
” Elongated hierarchal chains that are deeply drilled in the institutions need to be bridled to establish speedy evaluation process.
” Revival of meritocracy, selection and promotion on the basis of performance.
” Minimal intervention of state in day-to-day operations but must provide a solo direction, a path that leads to the development of any institution.
This agenda, if adopted will surely testify the structural development paving the way of institutional rebirth. Also a long-term standing rendition will be for certain that will spontaneously witness an ascending graph of economic stability. A state who became a nuclear power while in a mid of excessive external pressures and sanctions can do wonders if provided with an economic security.
To conclude, I would like to affix a translation of lines here done by Babar Ayaz in his book: What’s wrong with Pakistan?
You are sowing love with bullets
And smearing the face of the country with blood You are presuming that you are on track
But I am sure you are losing your destinationBeing a proud Pakistani, we have to realize the intensity of the upheavals through which Pakistan is presently crippling and crawling and have to work selflessly for the betterment of this invincible state and society. It is the need of hour to let us revive the Quaid’s Vision_ No matter what and how serious the circumstances will be, Pakistan has to stand tall in the comity of nations by re-launching and retooling its new version. Edward Gibbon said: “The winds and waves are always on the side of the ablest navigators”
Pakistan needs able and wise navigators.
Long Live Pakistan!!
